Chapter 22 Chapter 21 Self-defeating

Anne came back from school, put the slate and textbooks on the kitchen table, and said sadly, "Mrs. Linde is right, the world is indeed full of encounters and partings." After speaking, Anne wiped her red and swollen eyes with a handkerchief soaked in tears.This is the scene on the last day of June. "I brought an extra handkerchief to school today, what's wrong with that? I have a hunch that I will definitely use it today." "I didn't expect that Mr. Phillips' resignation would make you so sad that you used two handkerchiefs to wipe your tears? Do you really like him that much?" Marilla asked.

"I don't seem to cry because I like him," Annie said after thinking about it. "Everyone was crying, and I was crying too. Ruby Gillies seemed to be possessed. She said that she hated Mr. Phillips the most, and she always said that, but when Mr. Phillips was about to give a speech She was the first to cry loudly at the farewell, and one by one the girls followed suit. "As I tried to hold back, I remembered Mrs. Phillips sitting me with Gilbert, the boy; he wrote my name on the blackboard without an 'E'; It was the first time he met such a child who didn't know much. In short, I hated him, but I couldn't help crying if I wanted to, so I had no choice but to cry.

"Even someone like Jenny Andrews said more than a month ago that it would be great if Mrs. Phillips quit, she wouldn't shed a tear, etc. But what, she cried the most , and borrowed a handkerchief from her younger brother to wipe her tears—as the saying goes, men don’t flick their tears lightly. Her younger brother didn’t cry, saying there was no need to bring a handkerchief, so he didn’t bring any. "Oh, Marilla, I am devastated. "Ms. Phillips gave us a very wonderful farewell speech. The first sentence at the beginning was 'the moment of our parting has finally come'. It was so touching that even the teacher's eyes were shining with tears, Marilla.

We talked in class, drew portraits of the teacher on the slate, and joked about the teacher and Prissy. It was too wrong, and now my conscience has been condemned, and I regret it.As long as I'm a model student like Minnie Andrews, it's true that Minnie doesn't feel any condemnation of conscience. "The girls also came back crying after school. Everyone just calmed down a little bit. Unexpectedly, only two or three minutes later, Charlie Sloan said again, 'It's finally time to say goodbye to us', and everyone went on again. I burst into tears. "I'm so sad, Marilla. But with more than two months of summer vacation from now, I won't fall into the abyss of despair, will I? Besides, I met the new pastor who just got off the train this university. Couple. I was in a bad mood when Mrs. Phillips left, but I became a little interested in the new priest and his wife. Mrs. Pastor is beautiful, but not supernaturally beautiful. Although she is beautiful, But I think she's ugly, because she's a bad example. Mrs. Lynde says that every clergyman from Newbridge wears a bad influence, "Mrs. Vicar looks like she's wearing pretty blue wool with lantern sleeves. skirt and a hat decorated with roses.Jenny Andrews said it was vulgar for a Vicar's lady to wear balloon sleeves, not befitting at all.I never say things that are inconsiderate to others.Marilla, but I understand her desire to wear a skirt with lantern sleeves very well. First of all, because she has only been married to a pastor for a short time, be less tolerant to her. Isn't she too pitiful?They were told they were going to stay at Mrs. Lynde's until the Vicarage was ready. "

That night, Marilla ran to Mrs. Lynde's house, saying that she was going to return the frame for the quilt she had borrowed for the winter.In fact, it didn't matter if there was no reason to go to Mrs. Lynde's, and Marilla had the same ridiculous weakness as the people in Albany, and this was the reason. On the same night, several people returned the things borrowed from Mrs. Linde's house, and even returned some things that they thought would never be returned after they were borrowed.In a small village where few major events happen, the new pastor is a novelty, not to mention that the pastor has a wife who has just married, which makes the people in Yabanli unable to sit still .

The former pastor, Reverend Bentree, whom Anne called unimaginative, had been a pastor for 18 years and was a bachelor when he came to Albany.The good people in Yabangli enthusiastically match him up every year, but in the end they didn't succeed. The pastor lived a lonely life and died in February of that year.He may have been less good at preaching, but he will be deeply missed for those who have grown accustomed to it for so long. Since then, every Sunday, one candidate after another came and preached the doctrine alternately.The believers of the Yabanli Church require them to give full play to their strengths and perform a variety of religious performances, from which the believers evaluate these various candidates.

However, evaluation of pastors is not just a matter for the elders. In the corner of the Cuthbart family's traditionally fixed seat, Anne, a red-haired girl, is sitting solemnly, and she also holds corresponding opinions.She and Marshall had a lively discussion, and Marilla, who thought it wrong to criticize the priest under any circumstances, did not join in the discussion. "I don't think Smith is a good man, Marshall." This was Anne's final conclusion. "Mrs. Lynde said that the way he talks doesn't work at all. I think his biggest flaw is the same as Reverend Bentley's, lack of imagination. On the contrary, Tori has too much imagination, and my 'ghost forest' Similarly, imagination and reality are too far off the mark. Mrs. Linde said that Tory’s theological attainments are not deep enough, Gresham is a very good person, he is very devout in his beliefs, loves to tell jokes, and often makes people laugh in church. The so-called majesty, the pastor still has to be a little majestic, right, Marshall.

"I think Marshall's modesty is charming, but Mrs. Lynde says he's a bachelor and not engaged. She's done all sorts of research and doesn't think a young, bachelor priest would do well because he might get married to the parish. Which one of the above-mentioned people married, then it became a big question, and Mrs. Lynde considered all the above-mentioned people one by one. "It's great that Alan is finally determined to be the pastor here. He preaches very funny, prays seriously, and is very competent. Mrs. Linde said that Alan can't be said to be perfect, but only 750 yuan a year can hire a good one. The pastor is already quite reluctant. He also understands theology and can answer all questions related to the doctrine fluently. Mrs. Linde also said that she even knows the pastor's wife's parents. They are all serious people, and the women in the family are good at All kinds of housework. In Mrs. Linde's opinion, the husband is proficient and familiar with the teachings, and the wife is diligent in housework. The pastor's family is really an ideal combination."

The newly-arrived pastor and his wife are a pair of newly married young good people. They regard the lifelong career of pastor as their ideal job. They have been warmly welcomed by the residents of Yabanli from the very beginning.The young pastor with lofty ideals, frank and straightforward, and the housewife of the pastor's house, the cheerful, gentle and enthusiastic little lady are very popular among the old people and children in Yabang. Anne only saw Mrs. Alan once, and was deeply attracted by her, and Anne found another bosom friend. "Mrs. Arlan is very kind," said Anne to Marilla one Sunday afternoon. "She's one of the best teachers I've ever had. Mrs. Allan started by saying that she didn't think it was fair to have only teachers asking questions in a class. I've said that a few times, didn't I?" Mrs. Allan said what questions students like to ask You can ask questions without restraint, so I asked a lot of questions, and I am good at asking questions."

"Yes." Marilla nodded vigorously. "The only person who asked me a question was Ruby Gillis, and she asked if Sunday school was doing field trips this summer, because it had nothing to do with what was being done in the class, so I didn't think it was a good idea Ask a question. However, Mrs. Alan just kept smiling. Mrs. Alan smiled so beautifully that she showed two lovely dimples when she smiled. I wish I had two dimples. Although I have gained some weight, I haven't gained any dimples. If I have dimples, it will give people a good impression. "Mrs. Alan said that whatever you do, you must try to have a good influence on people. She told us all kinds of things very enthusiastically. I didn't know that religion was so interesting. Religion I don't know why I always find this kind of thing to be irritating and depressing, but after being explained by Mrs. Alan, it is not boring at all. If I am often influenced by Mrs. Alan like this, I really want to become a Christian. But a Christian like Principal Bell is so annoying that I'd rather not be."

"It's wrong to pay so much attention to Mr. Bell!" Marilla said in a terrible voice. "Mr. Bell is a very good person." "Oh, of course. But he doesn't look happy at all. If I could be a good man, I'd be happy singing and dancing all day long, though Mrs. Arlan doesn't think it's possible to live happily all the time. If the pastor's wife did that, of course it would be a bit inappropriate. "However, I know that when I see Mrs. Alan, I will think how nice it would be if I were a Christian. Although Mrs. Alan said that if you are not a Christian, you can still enter the kingdom of heaven, but I think it is better to be a Christian." .” "I would like to invite Alan and his wife to drink tea in the near future." Marilla thought for a while and said. "Yes, it's right around Wednesday next week, but you must never tell Marshall about it. If he knows, he will find an excuse to hide, although he and the Reverend Bentley are very close and have nothing to say." talk, but he would not have given him tea with the new vicar. The day the new vicar and his wife arrived, he was quite frightened to death." "I'll never tell," Anne assured. "However, Marilla, on that day, can I also bake some cakes for tea? For Mrs. Alan, I want to do something. I can only make some desserts more skillfully, right?" "You can bake some layer cakes," Marilla promised, too. On Monday and Tuesday, Green Gybruzzi worked nervously and desperately. How could such an important matter as inviting the pastor and his wife to drink tea be defeated by the other housewives in Albany?Anne was so excited that she jumped up and down. On Tuesday evening, Anne and Diana sat on the red stones beside the Drouard fountain in the twilight, dipping twigs of fir resin with glue in the water and playing. While speaking intimately. "It's all ready, Diana, and all that's left is for me to make the cake tomorrow morning, and for Marilla to make the baking powder biscuits before tea. Marilla and I have been so busy these two days that we invite the pastor and his wife to have a drink." Tea is a big responsibility, and this is the first time I have experienced such a thing. "Oh, Diana, I really want you to check out my pantry. Hey, it's spectacular. There's a chicken jelly platter and frozen beef tongue. The jelly comes in red and yellow, and there's cream ice cream and lemon There are three kinds of pies, cherry pies, and cookies. Not to mention, there are also fruit snacks and Marilla's specialty candied yellow apricots, which are specially picked to invite the pastor and his wife to drink tea. The next step is heavy oil The cake and the layer cake I made, and the biscuits just mentioned. "There are also two types of bread, freshly baked and slightly stale. The pastor has a weak stomach and is prone to indigestion. Maybe he can't enjoy the freshly baked bread. According to Mrs. Linde, most pastors have indigestion However, Uncle Alan has not been a priest for a long time, so I don't think it will cause too much damage to the body. "When I think about making a layer cake, my body becomes cold. What if I make a mistake? I had a dream last night. I dreamed that I was chased by a devil made of layer cake." "It's all right, it's going to be a success," said Diana encouragingly.Diana always came out to cheer Anne up at times like this. "Didn't you eat a layer cake in Adelweild two weeks ago? That was really delicious." "But cake, if you say you're going to make it right, it's bound to fail." Annie sighed, and let the sprigs of fir resin thickly coated with glue float on the water. "Oh, resign yourself! Just don't forget to add the wheat flour. Oh, Diana, look, what a rainbow, and if we're gone, Drouard will come and use the rainbow for a scarf." "What Drouard, it doesn't exist," said Diana. Because Diana's mother also heard about the "ghost forest" and was very angry. Since then, Diana has tried not to let herself spread the wings of fantasy to imagine at will, and she even thinks it's better not to believe Drew. Yad this thing. "But, can't you immediately imagine its existence? I always look outside before going to bed every night, and the goblin Drouard is really sitting here. Is she using the spring water as a mirror and combing her long hair?" hair? Sometimes in the morning I also pay attention to see if there are any goblin tracks left on the dew.Hey Diana, do you believe in Drouard this time?Don't give up your imagination. " Wednesday morning finally arrived, and Anne was so excited that she didn't sleep well last night.As soon as it was daylight, she got up from the bed. Because she played by the spring water last night and got wet by the spring water, she had a bad cold. As long as she didn't develop pneumonia and other diseases, Anne must go to the kitchen. . After breakfast, Annie started to make cakes. She didn't let out a long breath until she put the cakes in the oven and closed the oven door. "Now, think about what else you forgot to do, Marilla. But, do you think the cake will rise? What if the baking powder doesn't work?Open a new can.Mrs. Lynde said that there were a lot of bad mixes on the market these days, and no decent baking powder.Mrs. Linde said that the government should find a way to rectify it. Now that the Tory Party is in power, it is useless to look forward to it.Marilla, what if the cake won't rise? " "There are plenty of other things to eat," said Marilla with the utmost coolness. However, the cake expanded better than expected. When it was taken out of the oven, it was like a golden bubble, soft and fluffy. The cake was made so easily.Annie's face was flushed with joy, and she sandwiched the ruby-colored jelly in the middle. In an instant, the scene of Mrs. Alan tasting the cake appeared in front of Annie's eyes, and she might want to eat another piece! "The best tea service this time, Marilla? Will you decorate the table with briars and ferns?" "It's boring to decorate with flowers and plants." Marilla snorted. "The important thing is the food, not the boring decoration." "Mrs. Barry just decorates the table with flowers," said Anne.Anne also more or less "possesses some snake-like wisdom that tempted Eve." I heard that the pastor even praised it, saying that it should not only be sweet and delicious, but also pleasing to the eye. " "Well, you can decorate it if you want," Marilla said.Marilla thought she couldn't lose to Mrs. Barry and the others. "But leave room for the plates and the food." Anne resolved to present herself in such a way that even Mrs. Barry would be envious of her.Ferns, wild roses, everything that one expects to find, not to mention Anne also has a unique artistic inspiration, she decorated the table in a very unique and elegant way. After a while the pastor and his wife came.As soon as the pastor and his wife sat down, they all praised the wonderful table decoration. "Anne designed it." Marilla was always impartial.Mrs. Alan smiled at Anne with admiration, and Anne was so proud that she seemed to have risen to the sky. Marshall also accompanied the guests at the same table, how he was persuaded, only Yamato Anne knew.At first Marshall slipped upstairs, trembling with fright.Marilla thought it was over, and she had no more illusions about him, but Anne ably persuaded him, and at last Marshall, dressed in the best clothes with a white collar, unexpectedly chatted with the priest, although he said He didn't say a word to Mrs. Arlan, but perhaps such expectations were too far-fetched for Marshall. Before Anne's layer cake was served, everything went smoothly and the guests ate deliciously, but after the cake was served, Mrs. Alan, who was recommended to taste all kinds of delicious things, declined the cake for no reason.Seeing Anne with a disappointed expression, Marilla immediately said with a smile on her face: "Please just try a piece, this is specially made by Anne for Mrs. Alan." "Oh, if that's the case, I have to try it." Mrs. Alain smiled and cut a large piece of cake, and the pastor and Marilla each took a piece. Mrs. Alan took a bite, and immediately showed a strange expression on her face, but she didn't say anything, and ate it quietly. Marilla, who had been watching Mrs. Alan, quickly tasted the cake. "Annie? Jerry!" cried Marilla. "My God! What the hell did you put in the cake?" "It's on the cooking card, Marilla," cried Annie, her face twitching convulsively. "tastes bad?" "It's too bad, Mrs. Alan barely ate it, Anne, try it yourself, what spices did you use?" "Vanilla vanilla," said Anne, and she blushed with shame as she took a bite of the cake. "Only Vanilla vanilla, oh, Marilla, it must be bad baking powder, that kind of baking powder is very questionable..." "Stop it! Show me the vanilla vanilla bottle." Annie ran quickly to the storage room and brought back a small bottle containing a little tea-colored liquid, with "Premium Vanilla Vanilla" written on it in yellowish letters. Marilla took the bottle, uncorked it, and sniffed it. "Oh, Annie, so you added the painkiller to the cake as vanilla vanilla. I accidentally broke the vial of painkiller last week and poured the rest into the vanilla vanilla It’s half of my responsibility; I didn’t tell you beforehand, it’s my fault, but why don’t you use your sense of smell to identify it?” Annie burst into tears when she heard this. "What, what, I have a severe cold, can't my nose smell anything?" After finishing speaking, Annie turned around and ran back to the east wing, threw herself on the bed, and burst into tears. It seemed that no one's persuasion or comfort could be listened to. After a while, there was a sound of light footsteps on the stairs, and someone came into Anne's room. "Oh, Marilla, I'm done," cried Anne, still buried in her head. "There's no hope of salvage, and everybody will soon find out, it's always been like that in Albany, and Diana will be sure to ask me how the cake is doing, and I'll have to tell the truth. I'll be The man pointed at the back and said, this is the girl who put the painkiller in the cake as spice, and I will always be laughed at by those Gilbert boys. "Oh, Marilla, if you have any pity, please don't let me wash the dishes now. I won't be too late to wash the dishes after the pastor and his wife have left. I have no face to see Mrs. Alan again. Maybe she will I think I poisoned her. Didn’t Mrs. Linde say that there was an orphan girl poisoning her benefactor? But this kind of medicine is not poisonous. Riley added something like that. Marilla, can you explain it to Mrs. Arlan for me?" "Then stand up quickly and talk about it yourself!" said a kind and amiable voice. Annie jumped up from the bed and took a closer look. It turned out that Mrs. Alan was standing beside the bed, and she was looking at Annie with a smile. "Come, Anne, don't cry like that," said Mrs. Arlan.Seeing Annie crying miserably, she seemed to be really worried, "Anyone can do something wrong, this is not a ridiculous failure." "It's not what you said, only I can do that kind of thing." Annie said very dejectedly. "For Mrs. Alan, I desperately want to bake a decent and delicious cake..." "Oh, I see. Although the baking was not successful, I received Annie's enthusiasm and heart. I am so happy. Come on, don't cry anymore, let's go downstairs and take me to see the flower beds, listen to Cass Miss Bart said, it seems that Anne has a special flower bed, and I am also very interested in planting flowers, so I want to have a look." Anne really stopped crying after being told by Mrs. Alan, and the two went downstairs together while talking.Anne thought, Mrs. Alan has the same soul as me, it's great, no one will mention it anymore. Seeing off the guests, Anne thought to herself that despite the interlude, it had been a rather pleasant evening, for which she let out a long sigh. "Marilla, I'm a little worried at the thought of what trouble I'll make again tomorrow." "It's okay, because you're always going to make trouble. I've never seen a kid like you who always makes trouble." "Indeed." Anne had to admit sadly, "But, Marilla, there is only one thing I am confident of. Have you noticed that I will never make the same mistake a second time." "But you make new mistakes again and again, and each time is different. In short, even pigs would not eat that cake, let alone people."